Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny even though there was a 60% chance of rain. Me, Cari and the kids loaded our stuff up and headed to the shosp. We got the shop open and the kids watching tv as me and Cari went out and shot our bows since we had both just changed sights. About an hour later Maranda and Jason showed up and waited on me to work on a bow and some arrows before we left for the 3d shoot at MCAC. Cari and the kids stayed and watched the shop while we went and shot.

We arrived at the shoot at almost 2pm and luckily they let us go ahead and shoot.. We rushed through the targets trying to hurry and didnt shoot quite as good as we should have. Miranda has only been shooting about 6 weeks now and is showing great improvement and wanted to try a little bow hunting even though she said she would stick with the rifle when she started shooting. We finished the course and started back towards the shop, and on the way started talking about going hog huntin so I called my friend Howie who is the ranch manager at Hunt And Shoot ranch in Chester, TX where I live. He said to come on out so we stepped on the gas as it was after 4pm and the feeders go off at 7pm.

We got back to the shop and got some broadheads down for Jason,Miranda and Cari. Cari has been shooting for about 23 years but has never bowhunted or taken any animal with the bow though she has taken around 10 deer with the rifle. She has had bad luck on hogs even with the rifle with misses and lost hogs in thick, impenatrable swamps. I got the three of them to shoot some broadheads and they were all shooting the same as their field points with the girls shooting the 85gr magnus stinger and Jason the 100gr 2bld Rage. By now it was almost 6pm and it is a 35 minute drive from the shop to our house. We rushed home and Cari changed clothers and met Jason and Miranda back out on the road.

We got to Hunt and Shoot and Howie took the three of them out while me and the kids stayed up at the house. Howie had Miranda on a hog in just a few minutes while driving into the stand. They got out and stalked the small group of 30-40lb pigs and got her within 25 yds where she made a great shot on a red hog. Jason got out and they got into the stand that was there and waited for the feeder to go off. Right at dark another group of pigs came in and Jason put a Rage through one of the little bar b q size pigs, and heard it  breathe its last as last light faded.

Mean while Howie had taken  Cari to another stand and itercepted a herd of hogs on the way to it. Cari was really worried about shot placement and also being on the ground with hogs. Howie had her sneak up behind some trees and get to about 25yds from the group. Cari drew her bow and was really excited and shot a hair low and cleanly missed. THe hogs took off and Howie took her on down and put her in the stand. Right at dark 2 other groups of hogs came in with one behind her not wanting to come all the way in until the group that came out in front of her went straight to the feeder. Cari waited and waited and drew and let down several times until a nice red hog about 80lbs gave her a clear shot and she put a magnus through his heart.

Howie had to go to work at his other job so I left the kids at the house watching tv and took the 4 wheeler to get everybody. I took a light as none of the 3 hunting had one and were sitting out there in the dark. I got to Jason and Miranda first and we tracked their hogs which had not gone far. Nest I went down to Cari and found blood quick but the trail was slow going on the bare sand n that bottom and it had rained about 2″ just befor e we got there. It took me about 30 minutes or so but I found her hog about 65yds down the hill from where she had shot him. We loaded the hogs on the 4 wheeler and I gave them the light and let them walk out as I took the meat to the cooler where we gutted them and hung them until the next morning when I skinned and quartered them, with us eating a backstrap for supper.

All in all it turned out to be a great day on one that was supposed to be wet and dreary all day. I had 2  ladies shoot their  first game with the bow and Jason got to bloody his new Bowtech Alligiance he got from me.